Prerequisites

• Windows 10 version 1809 (build 17763) or later
• Windows App SDK 1.4 or later installed
• MSIX Packaging Tool (download)
• Microsoft Partner Center account for Store submissions

Publishing to Microsoft Store

Follow these steps to submit your app to the Microsoft Store.

1. Create a package using the makeappx tool or Visual Studio.
2. Sign the package with your code‑signing certificate.
3. Validate the package with the MSIX Packaging Tool.
4. Upload the package in Partner Center.
5. Complete the Store listings and submit for certification.

Command‑line example

# Build the app
dotnet publish -c Release -f net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0

# Create the MSIX package
MakeAppx pack /d .\bin\Release\net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0\publish /p MyApp.msix

# Sign the package
SignTool sign /fd SHA256 /a /f MyCert.pfx /p MyPassword MyApp.msix

Continuous Integration / Continuous Deployment (CI/CD)

Automate your build and release pipeline with GitHub Actions or Azure DevOps.

GitHub Actions workflow snippet

name: Build & Publish

on:
  push:
    branches: [ main ]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: windows-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Setup .NET
        uses: actions/setup-dotnet@v3
        with:
          dotnet-version: "8.x"
      - name: Restore & Build
        run: dotnet build -c Release
      - name: Pack MSIX
        run: |
          dotnet publish -c Release -f net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0
          MakeAppx pack /d .\bin\Release\net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0\publish /p MyApp.msix
      - name: Sign package
        uses: microsoft/secure-signing@v2
        with:
          certificate-name: MyCert
          input-file: MyApp.msix
      - name: Upload to Store
        uses: microsoft/store-publish-action@v1
        with:
          package-path: MyApp.msix
          tenant-id: ${{ secrets.TENANT_ID }}
          client-id: ${{ secrets.CLIENT_ID }}
          client-secret: ${{ secrets.CLIENT_SECRET }}